Dancing With Dunces
by momoxtoshiro
Summary: "It is absolutely preposterous to take the hand of someone you harbor no true feelings for." [Happy RWBY Tuesday!]


**The Vytal Festival is supposed to have parades and dances, right? Right.**

**There are a few OCs in here briefly. They belong to Angie (weissrabbit) and Hiro (nonowaru) and I just think they're adorable and you should, too. Hope I wrote them okay..**

**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

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Dancing With Dunces

Dazzling lights illuminated the streets, sparkling in the darkness of the evening and sending out the wafting atmosphere only attributed to joyous occasions all throughout Vale.

The buildings were strung with decorations and banners, welcoming all the neighboring countries to the Vytal Festival.

The town was still being swept clean by the hands of involved citizens who had thrown confetti and flowers through the streets earlier that day during the parades. Every building was festive and spoke of celebration, and every heart was light and eager for the coming events that the festival entailed.

One such event was the Vytal Dance held at Beacon Academy. All visiting students and participates of the future days' tournament were invited to the celebration, the school having set up a massive banquet hall that could hold hundreds of people.

Due to the special events set in the program for that evening, classes had been called off for all of Beacon's students that day. Instead, those enrolled had been involved with helping prepare everything, hanging decorations, organizing food tables, and fixing lighting and audio within the banquet hall.

Ruby enjoyed seeing everything come together as much as the next person. However, the next person in this case, turned out to be none other than her one and only partner.

Weiss had been barking out orders all day, rushing up to the professors every few minutes and holding hushed conversations with them about how things should be positioned. She snapped at anything that breathed to "Get moving!" or "No, not _there_ you nincompoop!" or "Are you _daft_?! It has to be like _this_!" or "Oh, for heaven's sake, give it to me!"

All day the heiress had been dashing about the school like a rabbit- checking the length of every banner, the freshness of every slice of bread, the amount of dust on every floor tile- without a second to catch her breath.

Ruby, Blake, and Yang presently worked in the banquet hall, setting up chairs around the perimeter of the room in order to make way for a wide dance floor. "Make sure they're spaced properly!" Weiss shouted from her overseeing position across the room. "Five inches exactly!" She then directed her attention to her next victim who was setting one of the tables. "No! You're doing it all wrong! Put them in rows not columns!"

As Weiss stomped off to lecture the next helpless soul, Yang gave a low whistle.

"Wow. I've seen the princess worked up before, but this is insane."

"It's actually kind of amusing." Blake smirked. "I've never seen her so intent about something before."

"Blake's right." Ruby mused. "Weiss has always had a love for organization and putting things into place. I just never expected she'd be the one running the show."

"What a total nerd." Yang chuckled.

"Yeah..." Ruby sighed the word amusedly. "It's good to see her so into something, though. Even if it does put others...at risk."

"Wait, what is she doing?" Blake's question alerted the sisters' attention back to their other teammate for a minute.

Weiss was stalking over to a group of boys, whom they instantly recognized to be Team CRDL.

"Oh, god..." Ruby shoved back the chair she had been holding and made a move to retrieve to her partner.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Yang grabbed her wrist to stop her. "Let's see what happens."

The three of them watched in subdued anxiety as Weiss stormed over to the troublesome team. She squared up to Cardin and got up into his face, and although her teammates could not hear what she was shouting, they could very clearly see the terrified expression her victim was displaying. Weiss jabbed her index finger up to his nose before sweeping her arm around at the rest of his team, and then continued her enraged discourse.

Her teammates knew Weiss despised Cardin just as much as the majority of the school did, but unlike most others, the heiress was not afraid to assert herself and snap orders into his sorry face.

Ruby watched incredulously as Weiss stomped her foot, shouting some authoritative demands that nearly made the boys fall over. A second later, the four had dispersed in wake of Weiss's anger, scuffling out of the banquet hall like frightened puppies.

Ruby realized Yang had let go of her hand because she was laughing too hard to breathe. Blake's ears twitched, beyond impressed with the heiress's display.

"Wow." Ruby gaped. "Okay... guess she's fine."

Just then, Weiss turned back, her gaze sweeping across her teammates who hastily scrambled to make themselves appear busy. Ruby heard the distinct clicking of heels against the marbled floor and felt her hackles raise with the approaching sense of danger as her girlfriend's presence trudged up behind her.

"_Honestly_!"

"Eeep!"

"...What's gotten into you?"

"Ah, oh n-nothing, nothing at all..."

"Well anyway," the heiress continued. "I am simply _appalled_ at the behavior of some of these ungrateful slackers. It's like they've never set up for a celebration in all their lives!"

"Maybe not in a luxurious banquet hall..." Yang muttered.

"_Luxurious_?" Weiss scoffed. "Please. This is child's play compared to the parties my family has hosted. Which is _precisely_ why the organization should be an easy process even _those_ simpletons can comprehend." She glimpsed to the clock on the far side of the room and let slip a small gasp. "We're four minutes behind schedule. This is preposterous. We only have twenty six minutes left before we have to get changed, and then only another thirty minutes until the guests start arriving. I've got to check on the refreshments table." Mumbling all of this to herself, Weiss scurried off.

Yang shook her head from side to side as she watched her go. "She is so weird."

"Yeah, but it's kinda cute." Her sister mused fondly.

The three of them finished placing the chairs about the room, standing back to admire their work.

"Welp." Yang grinned. "I think we've done well."

"But it's not our input that particularly matters here." Blake reminded her.

"Buuuut I'm not sure I wanna stick around until Weiss comes back to critique." Ruby laughed nervously. The others nodded their agreement before slipping out of the hall.

Now that she got a good look at everything, Ruby could begin to appreciate where her partner was coming from in the enjoyment of planning out such an event; she had to admit the sense of accomplishment of seeing it all come together was quite satisfying.

The banners on the walls were neatly hung at appropriate intervals, the tables lining the sides of the room spaced properly, and the area for the dance floor shaped into a perfect, elongated rectangle. Lights dangled from the walls and ceilings in strings, resembling vines as they hung down in small clusters.

Ruby noted there were significantly fewer people about than there had been an hour ago, and she realized it was almost time for them to start getting dressed.

"Well, should we head on back?" Yang offered. "Before the princess finds us again and gives us something else to do?"

"Sounds good." Blake chuckled.

They returned to their dorm room briefly, hearing excited squealing coming from across the hall, indicating at least one of team JNPR's members was getting herself ready.

As the three girls of team RWBY slipped into their room, Ruby was the first to rush to the closet and pull out her dress.

Of course, students at Beacon could purchase their own attire for the dance if they so desired, but the most popular course of action for most had been to rent an outfit provided by the school. All of them but a certain heiress had selected their dresses from the latter method, and therefore knew what one another's outfits entailed.

However, no one had seen what Weiss intended to wear, and the heiress had not spoken a word about it.

Ruby rushed into the bathroom first to change. She had selected a crimson party dress with long sleeves. The dress widened at the hips and lifted slightly into a wide circle about the knees where the ruffled material fanned out.

She slipped into her black leggings before brushing through her hair quickly. Finally, she stepped into her red shoes with 2-inch heels, a significant difference from her usual boots.

When she emerged, her teammates eagerly looked up to take in her appearance.

"Wow, sis!" Yang whistled. "You'll be breaking quite a few hearts tonight!"

"You really think so?" Ruby's cheeks ran red to match her dress.

"Sure!" Yang beamed, barely resisting the urge to hug her. "Now let Blakey take care of your hair for a minute while I get changed."

Ruby did as her sister suggested and went to Blake as Yang took her leave.

"Do you want me to do anything special?" Blake asked, sitting Ruby down into a chair.

"Hmm, surprise me!"

Blake thought for a minute as she curled her fingers through Ruby's hair, gently combing through it until she came to a decision. Grabbing a few bobby pins from the desk, Blake pulled Ruby's hair to one side, parting it on the left and pinning up the loose strands. Her finishing touch was to add a hair clip that adorned a rose design, and at last Blake stood back, satisfied.

Ruby offered a silent apology to Weiss as she opened one of the heiress's personal mirrors to get a look at herself. "Wow, Blake! I love it! It's somehow neat while also being a little messy."

"I'm glad." Blake smiled.

It was then the bathroom door unlocked and both girls turned to look at Yang.

Naturally, the elder sister chose to take advantage of her killer looks and selected a long, golden dress that was tinged with a white shine, long cuts running up to her thighs. The collar area was cut into a low V-shape down her front, just barely safe enough to avoid being called scandalous.

She wore golden-colored, open-toed heels with straps that hung around her ankles, and her toenails had been quickly painted a similar color, as had her fingernails. Her mane of hair had been blow-dried in order to have it fluff out more. Unlike her younger sister's, Yang's dress had only straps and no sleeves, which seemed to fit the zealous girl who was always wafting heat.

"Woooww!" Ruby sang. "Yang, you look so _pretty_!"

"Just _look_?" Yang chuckled. She noticed the pink hue on Blake's cheeks and winked, sending her girlfriend's heart rate into overdrive. "So whaddaya think, Blakey?"

"It suits you... very nicely." Blake's voice was weak as she quickly tried to regain her composure. "H-Here." She handed Yang a necklace with a heart-shaped pendant.

"What's this?" Yang perked up. "I don't remember renting it. Could it be... you bought it for me?" She gave her girlfriend a knowing smirk.

"Is there something wrong with that?" Blake mumbled.

"Wow! Thanks a ton, Blakey!" Yang threw her arms around her, and Blake was instantly enticed by whatever citrusy perfume she had sprayed on. "Think you could put it on for me?"

"Fine..." Blake wiggled out of the embrace and slid behind Yang, fastening the necklace. "There."

Ruby offered Yang the mirror and her sister let out another bounce of excitement. "It looks awesome! Thanks again!" She darted in to quickly kiss Blake's cheek.

"I'm glad you like it." Blake shuffled her feet a little.

"Now hurry and go get changed!" Yang encouraged her. "I wanna see you finally put that dress on!"

"...Right." Swallowing hard, Blake retrieved her own dress from the closet and disappeared into the bathroom.

"Oooh, cute!" Yang hummed as she inspected her sister's hair.

"Want me to do anything with yours?"

"Hmm... Nah. I like it wild." Yang flung her hair over one shoulder.

The two sisters fussed over one another for a few minutes, adjusting straps and tucking back loose hairs and un-ruffling material until the bathroom door opened again.

Blake stepped out with a much different air than that of her girlfriend's. Unlike Yang's, her dress was much more modest; with loose sleeves going as far as her elbows, black, silky material sculpted her perfect figure down to her knees.

She wore her trademark purple-tinged tights and black heels. Her long, onyx hair was wavy and flowed down her back like a cascade, her triangular cat ears popping up atop her head.

It was Yang's turn to blush now as she marveled at her girlfriend's appearance.

"Woooww." Ruby offered.

"You. Look. _Gorgeous_!" Yang exclaimed. "Aaaand it just so happens, I picked you up a little something as well!"

Gliding behind her partner, Yang brushed her soft tresses to one side as she slipped a simple necklace around her collarbones, the pendant a small black stone that shimmered in the light. Blake smelled of a cool autumn night, and Yang lingered a moment longer to inhale the scent.

"Thank you, Yang." Blake murmured, touched.

"No need to thank me!" She waved her hand dismissively. "Now where's your bow? I've got an idea." As Blake retrieved her accessory, Yang gathered her partner's hair and gently brushed through it. She left the majority of the length untouched, but gathered a small layer of hair and tied it into a small ponytail before securing it with the bow. "There!" Yang grinned. "Not bad, if I do say so myself!"

"Thanks. I like it a lot." Blake smiled in return.

As the three of them fixed one another up with the finishing touches, Ruby could not help but glance at the clock. Time had flown by, and there were only fifteen minutes until the banquet hall would be open to attendees.

Ruby was beginning to worry since Weiss had yet to come back, as she knew her girlfriend was punctual about everything, _especially_ events like these.

The others realized Ruby's plight and Yang placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Even if she's a little late, I'm sure we'll see here there." She reassured. "But let's get going; better for her to show up late than us. We'd never hear the end of it."

"I guess you're right..."

The three girls stepped out into the hallway, closing their door behind them. Before they could head off, team JNPR's door opened not a second later, and their four neighbors emerged.

"Hi guys!" Yang waved.

"Wow! You all look great!" Ruby clapped her hands together.

"Same to you guys!" Jaune replied. He was dressed in a black suit with a red tie, his blond hair slicked back and with a very professional air about him.

Ren wore similar attire, the only thing he had that his leader lacked was an enthusiastic girl on his arm.

Nora's elbow was locked tightly around Ren's, her outfit of pink and white ruffles contrasting nicely with his darker color-scheme.

Rather than a death-grip on his arm, Jaune's girlfriend slipped her arm around his elbow smoothly. Pyrrha's dress was a combination of the RWBY sisters', having the same cuts as Yang's while the color and sleeves matched Ruby's. Her long, scarlet hair had been let down, and her emerald eyes sparkled with anticipation.

The seven of them headed toward the banquet hall together, catching sight of dozens of other formally-dressed students lining the halls, some of which were familiar while others were foreign faces.

"I'm gonna dance the most!" Nora declared proudly. "I'm also going to eat the most!"

"As long as you don't break anything or any_one_, you may do whatever you please." Ren cautioned.

"Awesome!" She squealed, hugging his arm tighter.

Their display of affection reminded Yang that her own girlfriend was looking quite neglected at the moment, and so she quickly hooked her arm with Blake's.

Jaune and Pyrrha fell into step beside the lonely Ruby.

"Where's Weiss?" Pyrrha wondered.

"I'm not sure. She was running around all day, helping to organize everything so it'd be perfect tonight."

"I noticed." Pyrrha nodded worriedly. "I hope she didn't tire herself out so much that she won't be able to attend."

"Yeah. Me, too..." The possibility had occurred to Ruby, that Weiss would simply oversee the fruits of her labor before retreating to the room to rest. She must have been frowning because Pyrrha quickly continued.

"But I'm sure that's not the case. Knowing her, she wouldn't retire for the night until she'd seen everything through till the end."

Ruby smiled a little, realizing the truth in her words.

The two teams arrived at the entrance to the banquet hall, where their IDs were briefly checked and confirmed before they were permitted to enter.

Many of the tables were already beginning to fill up, and upbeat music was being played. The main lights had been turned off, but various other lights, including a chandler, provided more the sufficient lighting.

Nora dragged Ren toward the food instantly as Pyrrha and Jaune headed off to fetch refreshments.

Yang noticed Blake was fidgeting a bit and sat down beside her as her sensitive ears adjusted to the loud volumes of the room.

Ruby continued to scour the large room for any familiar flash of white, but remembered she did not even know what Weiss would be wearing if she were to attending at all. The room was very wide, therefore it was impossible to see from one end to the other amidst all the people sauntering about.

Yang noticed her sister's wandering eyes flickering about in search of Weiss, and Blake's ears were still twitching uncomfortably. It was evident that they could not dive directly into the fun, so Yang suggested a slow start.

"Why don't we just walk around and talk to some people?" She suggested.

"Yeah." Ruby nodded. "That sounds nice."

The three of them stood and headed off, but it was clear that neither Ruby nor Blake was the type to initiate a conversation with strangers, so they both made sure to stay a pace behind Yang.

The blonde easily drew the attention of half the room by simply walking, and it was only seconds before she was approached by a group of young men. She hit it off with them quite well, but Blake and Ruby shared an awkward glance as they waited silently behind her.

Ruby thought it might even be nice to run into the talkative Penny right about now, but the petite girl was nowhere in sight, if she was present at all.

However, a pair of girls soon stopped to start up a conversation, one with light, ginger-brown hair and a Faunus who adorned notable light green hair, a sharp grin, and a long alligator tail; certainly a rememberable pair.

At last, the discomfort of the party atmosphere began to die down, and Ruby was even beginning to enjoy herself as she started talking to some new people. Yet she made sure to keep her sister in sight at all times.

Blake had started speaking to the other Faunus as her companion went to Ruby. The newcomer wore a light-cream dress with pink boots that shielded up to her knees, and she happily introduced herself. "Fianan. Fianan Ginger." She smiled. "But you can call me Fee."

"Ruby Rose." The huntress smiled back. She entertained questions such as, "So you go to school here?", "What's the cafeteria food like?", and "Are you participating in the tournament next week?"

Ruby continued to smile as she gave her answers and inquired a few things in return. She discovered this girl loved cooking, and thought she seemed amiable enough to warm up to.

But a few minutes later, a boy with messy brown hair broke away from his conversation with Yang and called out to his companion. "Fee! Alice is at it again!"

"Cael?" The girl before Ruby looked up sharply. "Oh, crap she's eating all the food again..." She quickly turned back to Ruby. "Sorry! I've gotta go! See you in the tournament!" Fianan ended up giving a brief bow before scurrying off with her male companion in an effort to stop the girl with the alligator tail from devouring every sandwich in sight.

They left the three girls of team RWBY looking dumbfounded, but a few seconds later they all burst into laughter.

"I look forward to seeing those guys again!" Yang mused.

They continued to walk around, the atmosphere finally sucking them into the feeling of excitement.

Ruby caught sight of the new trio again at the food tables, where the Faunus girl, Alice, was evidently having a competition against Nora in seeing who could eat more. Ren laughed nervously as he spoke to Cael and Fianan, and Ruby was happy in knowing she would get to see these people again.

She then spotted Jaune and Pyrrha who were together on the dancing area, swaying slowly to the more romantic track that was presently playing. Ruby caught her sister's eye, and Yang was a bit apologetic, but Ruby understood.

She backed away to leave her teammates alone for a while, and Ruby decided to sit down on one of the many chairs she herself had set up before.

Yang apologized to her again under her breath before turning back to Blake.

"Do you know how to dance?" She checked.

"Are you making fun of me? Of course I do."

To prove her words, Blake placed her left hand on Yang's shoulder as she slipped her right hand into her partner's other palm. Yang's lips curled upward as she slipped her free hand onto Blake's waist. She gazed down into those lovely golden eyes as Blake got lost in lavender; she rather liked this juxtaposition, but made sure to lean in just a little closer than necessary.

Blake savored the warmth that emitted from Yang's body, breathing in the scent of summer and citrus. Likewise, Yang could not tear her eyes from Blake's face for a second; she hated even the brief second it took to blink.

She tried to pay no heed to the seconds that were gradually ticking away as they began to dance, praying this could last forever...

Meanwhile, Ruby watched the amounts of couples increase as the music continued to play, and she needed to stifle the aching in her chest when she realized how cold she felt in the room filled with so many people.

At the end of the slow song, she did not miss the kiss Jaune leaned down to give Pyrrha, nor the one Yang gave to Blake.

Ruby let out a long sigh as she glanced at the clock; she thought it would be better to return to the room rather than be the odd one out.

Shortly after the slow song, the more upbeat music returned, and the sideways swaying of the dancers turned into excited jumping about. Yang pumped her fist into the air and even managed to get Blake to join in. Her teammates halted briefly to wave Ruby to join, so she stood slowly, heavily, telling herself she needed to at least _try_ and have some fun.

But just before Ruby was thrown into the crowd, the collective movement of the room seemed to come to a halt.

The majority of gazes were cast toward the entrance, and Ruby instinctively knew.

The familiar clicking of heels against the marble floor filled her ears, more prominent than the combination of music and hundreds of voices.

The entire room froze for a moment to make way for the princess.

The second Ruby saw her, she felt her jaw drop and her heart stop.

Her small shoes were the color of pearls, fancy and only fit for one of such a standing as she was.

Her dress was a pale, ice-blue, like the sky after an early-morning drizzle, and it fit her slender figure perfectly, flowing all the way down to her ankles.

A white shawl was draped over her slim shoulders, downy and soft like freshly-fallen snow. Beneath it, her arms were folded daintily before her stomach, white gloves running up to her elbows.

Her wavy, alabaster hair had been pulled into an overflowing ponytail over her right shoulder, spiraling down in cascades of curled, white silk.

At last, Ruby's gaze came to focus on her eyes- that familiar, solid, mist-blue gaze that shimmered like the surface of a winter pond.

Her eyes locked with Ruby's, lighting up when they finally found the silver they had been searching for so long.

Ruby was drawn to her, stepping through the crowd as quickly as she dared, not allowing her eyes to blink until she had reached her.

She stopped before the heiress, trying to remember how to draw breath, how to speak.

It took her a few seconds, but eventually she managed to clear her throat.

"Weiss..."

"It's about time you came to fetch me." She huffed. "Do you have _any_ idea of how long I've been struggling with this attire by myself?" Her eyes then inched their way up Ruby's person, taking in every fabric of her dress. "And you came here without me looking so fashionable... I daresay, if I see _one more_ ruffian ogling you, I'll freeze him faster than he can blink."

"Weiss..." Ruby's voice was still a rasp as she tried to get her voice to form what her mind was thinking. She took a step forward, her hands finding her girlfriend's. "Weiss... you look _gorgeous_! Absolutely stunning! I... I can't even... oh, _wow_..." She felt the blood rush to her cheeks just by looking at Weiss.

The heiress's face was dusted slightly pink as well as she listened to Ruby babble.

"Oh, come now." Weiss huffed. "Surely you don't assume I dolled myself up specifically for your sake?"

"Huh? S-Sorry I wasn't listening..."

"Excuse you..." Weiss mumbled.

The two fell silent for a minute, still immersed, smitten, with one another's appearances. But Ruby noticed the ravenous stares of several onlookers who were beginning to circle Weiss like vultures. Smugly, Ruby pulled her girlfriend in closer, watching their faces twist with envy.

Then, Yang's loud voice rose above the din.

"Heya, Weiss! 'Bout time you showed up!" She broke from a circle of people with Blake in tow.

"Well, of course I had to check up on everything first." Weiss explained. "But honestly, what _is_ all of this dreadful music? It sounds like swarms of Grimm screeching."

"It's rap and pop!" Yang informed her. "And it's good! So stop complaining and enjoy yourself, why don'tcha?"

"Please." Weiss rolled her eyes. "I'm here solely for appearance and negotiations."

"_Negotiations_?" Blake and Yang both parroted.

"Yes! Don't _any_ of you recall a word I said about observing the competition?"

"...Ruby, help your girlfriend out, would ya?" Yang sighed before turning back to her own partner. "You up for another spin, Blake?"

"I hope you don't mean that literally."

Yang laughed as she picked Blake up into her arms and spun her around once before they twirled off into the crowd.

"Whatever are they doing?" Weiss stared after them. "This is no time to be haphazardly bumbling through the crowds of our future adversaries. Now's the time for digging up secrets and observing other teams and-"

"Weiss." Ruby threw her hands up to stop her from speaking. "Weiss, can you just... just hear me out?"

"If only I could." Weiss raised her voice slightly. "I can barely hear myself think." Just then, someone knocked into her shoulder and Weiss stumbled. Ruby only just managed to steady her. "Colossal buffoon!" Weiss hissed.

"Here, come with me."

Ruby took her hand and weaved a way through the dancing bodies until they broke free. Ruby led the heiress to the empty chairs and sat down beside her.

"Weiss," Ruby began again. "For once, Yang's right. This isn't the time for staking out the competition. You've worked so hard helping to put this together all day. Don't you think it's time to relax a little?"

Weiss blinked as she searched Ruby's gaze. She had long-since learned that being with Ruby, being with team RWBY, entitled not only cunning tactics to devise battle plans, but required more easygoing times as well. She could tell her leader was silently urging her to drop the observing mind-state, and Weiss sighed hopelessly as she wondered how long it had been since she could stop saying no to that face.

"Well," she sighed. "It certainly is stifling in here. And there's simply no way any of these ruffians would be able to hold and intelligent conversation..." Ruby looked at her hopefully. "So I presume... I can... join in a little..." Weiss decided.

"Really?" Ruby gave a little bounce.

"Just a little!" Weiss repeated. "And although I... would certainly not be opposed to doing so with you, I absolutely refuse to dance amidst such wafting heat and odor." She scrunched her nose for emphasis.

"I can't blame you." Ruby agreed, a little regretfully, but content nonetheless. "Follow me."

Standing, she took her girlfriend's hand again as she skirted around the room, trying to keep close to the more spacious table area. She brought Weiss to the refreshments and poured two cold glasses of water, and the pair relaxed a moment as they let the cool liquid sooth their dry throats.

"Honestly..." Weiss grunted after she had finished her beverage. "I wasn't under the impression this event was to be so cordial."

"Maybe not," Ruby shrugged. "But it's only a few days until the tournament starts, so isn't it fine to have a good time for now?"

"I suppose. That is, if this... barbaric foot-stomping is your idea of fun." The heiress scrunched her nose distastefully at those in the dance area.

"Hm, not really," Ruby clasped her hands together before her and shuffled her feet a bit. "But during the next slow song, I'll show you my idea of fun."

"What was that?"

"Nothing!" She sang.

For several more minutes, the boisterous dancing continued, hundreds of voices raised in laughter and song around them. Ruby noticed several more people send their baffled gazes in Weiss's direction, and it quickly got irksome enough for her to step up and block her girlfriend from their view.

Weiss had also noticed the eyes she was attracting, but just before she could start to feel uncomfortable, Ruby placed herself between them; the heiress could not help but offer a small smile.

At one point, Ruby's protectiveness got the better of her entirely, and she ended up leading Weiss to a more secluded section of the room. Weiss sat herself down as she gazed out into the crowd, trying to fathom exactly how they could manage to waste so much energy jumping about like imbeciles.

However, she allowed herself to feel a bit smug as she realized just how perfectly the lighting complimented her girlfriend's form as Ruby stood beside her. Her heart began to beat faster again as she realized exactly how gorgeous Ruby looked right now, and Weiss felt that her compliments from earlier were hardly sufficient in making her girlfriend aware of this fact.

She was at war with herself for minute until she finally managed to open her mouth, just as the current song came to an end.

"R...Ruby-"

"Oh, perfect!"

"...Pardon?" Weiss gave her a puzzled look as Ruby made a triumphant fist.

"This song!" She clarified.

Weiss closed her mouth as she strained her ears to pick up on the music.

The new song was leagues away from the loudness that had just ended; rather than plebeian-sounding stick-on-rock noises, it was much more refined, flowing softly with the liquid form of piano keys. It was the kind of music that struck something deep within Weiss, momentarily immobilizing her simply so she may appreciate the sound of something nostalgic, something just tantalizingly beyond reach...

Weiss blinked herself back into reality, her eyes readjusting to the lights as they dimmed slightly. A good portion of the people left the dance floor area, the hyper motions being replaced by more controlled ones as only a few dozen couples remained. She spotted her other two teammates together, as well as the members of team JNPR, secured in on another's arms, moving slowly.

Ruby noticed her girlfriend watching them a bit enviously, but did not allow the feeling to pursue a second longer.

Weiss looked up as Ruby appeared before her, bowing slightly and extending her hand.

"May I have this dance, my princess?"

Weiss smiled as she slid her hand into that warm palm.

"You may."

Ruby led her to the center of the room, drawing the attention of just about everyone as they went.

"They're all staring..." Weiss mumbled.

"Well _maybe_ if you weren't so criminally beautiful..." Ruby smirked.

Weiss quietly fought off her blush until they came to a halt. Feeling something pulling her forward, Weiss gazed up into Ruby's eyes...

...and realized how utterly lost her partner was.

"...You... have _no_ idea what you're doing, do you?" Part of Weiss had expected this.

"Ah, not...really..." Her girlfriend chuckled nervously. "I just wanted to dance with you..."

"For heaven's sake..." The heiress sighed hopelessly. "Just do as I say to prevent us from looking like _complete_ fools."

Weiss placed her right hand onto Ruby's shoulder before glaring expectantly at her girlfriend. It took her a second, but after flashing a quick glance across the room at her sister, Ruby quickly opened her right palm toward Weiss. The heiress slipped her left hand into place, but Ruby's other arm still hung uselessly at her side. Weiss quickly yanked it into place at her hip before returning her hand to its place on her partner's shoulder.

"Now then, follow my lead. And for the love of all that is sacred, _please_ try to refrain from stepping on me."

"Right." Ruby's eyes sparked with determination.

Weiss never imagined she would ever have to lead in a dance of any kind. Certainly, she had been expected to attend family events in the past, but all of those occasions had been purely appearance-based for business ventures. Not once had she been permitted to dance with another.

That was not to say she had never been approached before, quite the opposite in fact. She could not even begin to recount all of the offers she had turned down, but the restriction from taking their hands due to her father's orders was only a small fraction of the reasons she refused every single one of them.

Weiss remembered what she had told Ruby one night as she stared up at the underside her girlfriend's bed. _"It is absolutely preposterous to take the hand of someone you harbor no true feelings for._" She had declared. _"It is a personal creed of mine. I refuse to date frivolously like most others do. I decided long ago that the first person to capture my lips shall also be the last, with no one in between. I shall only take the hand of the person I love." _

Presently, she could tell the same memory must have just run through Ruby's mind as well, as her hand squeezed a bit tighter around the heiress's.

Weiss mirrored Ruby's smile as the chords of the piano continued to fill the room.

Surprisingly, Ruby had caught on impressively quickly, causing Weiss to realize it was her partner who now lead them about. Their feet glided smoothly across the polished floor, and Weiss briefly thought how relieved she was about giving the order to re-scrub the tile for a third time earlier that evening.

After a moment of moving slowly, being absorbed in one another's presences, Ruby's expression changed slightly as she ventured to attempt something different.

Weiss followed without question as Ruby's hand found its way to the small of her back. She twirled the heiress around once, their bodies moving in perfect sync, as elegant as any practiced combat maneuver. Dark crimson met sky-blue as the materials of their dresses pressed together before fluttering out behind them.

Then, Ruby extended her arm and stepped away from the heiress until only their hands connected them. Weiss traveled with the momentum of the motion and moved away for a brief moment, gazing at her partner from a distance.

Then, Ruby gave a slight tug, and Weiss twirled once as she returned to her girlfriend's side. The slight stumble in her step was covered flawlessly when Ruby gently caught her and pulled Weiss back into her arms. Their faces were mere centimeters apart, and Ruby did not need a cue in order to lean slightly forward and press her lips agains Weiss's.

It lasted only a second, but the things it conveyed would take eons to explain.

Finally, the heiress straightened up, and they took their initial dancing positions, keeping a small distance between them. The piano continued to play, and the majority of gazes were on them now, but they only had eyes for one another.

Ruby shifted a bit closer, and Weiss lightly rested her cheek on her shoulder. Ruby tightened her embrace on the girl she still had trouble believing she had been blessed enough to fall in love with. _I'll never let go._

Weiss let her eyelids fall shut as she lost herself in the scent of roses, the scent that never failed to quell her troubled heart, and make it just a little less troubled with each passing day. She only prayed that her own presence could do the same for Ruby.

Seeking that confirmation, Weiss lifted her head and sought Ruby's eyes and then her lips. She kissed her lovingly, thankfully, making sure Ruby knew just how much she meant to her, how she completed her life, how she allowed the purpose for her very existence.

At last, they pulled apart, but only slightly, their embrace never slackening. Weiss's lips curled into that rare smile, the one she permitted only Ruby to bear witness to. Ruby's gaze reflected the emotions that soared within the heiress's heart as she smiled as well.

"I love you, Weiss." Ruby murmured, kissing her again.

"I love you more." The heiress breathed.

"I love you most." Ruby gave a small smirk.

Weiss let out a small huff as she lightly stepped on her girlfriend's foot, affectionately scolding her as she shook her head with a chuckle.

"You dunce."

* * *

**A/N: Oh, golly this one was fun. I hope I did the OCs justice as well as everyone else!**

**Please review!**


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